Year-round Events Indoors and Out

Whether it’s a barbecue and softball in summer, cross-country skiing and tobogganning in winter, or a few rounds of golf, residents of Winnipeg have 10,000 acres of parkland, 1,000 parks and 26 golf courses to choose from throughout the city.

That figure is just a fraction of the additional recreational opportunities available outside the city, including dozens of summer cottage and beach destinations located within 100 km of city limits, 2.5 million acres of parkland and more than 100,000 pristine lakes.

Winnipeg and Manitoba also offer natural attractions such as FortWhyte Alive, the Ducks Unlimited Centre at Oak Hammock Marsh, as well as activities year round from sailing, windsurfing, and fishing to hiking and cycling or snowmobiling. 

Sports & Recreation

Through community sports associations, the city offers dozens of opportunities for participation in sports for competitors at any level.

Winnipeg also has a number of professional sports franchises, including:

  • The Manitoba Moose, (American Hockey League), who play at the downtown MTS Centre
  • The Winnipeg Blue Bombers (Canadian Football League) who play at CanadInns Stadium
  • Winnipeg Goldeyes (Northern Baseball League) who play at the spectacular downtown Canwest Park

Winnipeg has also played host to major sporting events, including the Grey Cup, the World Curling Championships, the Canada Summer Games, the World Junior Hockey Championships and the 1999 Pan American Games -- the biggest multi-sport event ever held in Canada. 

Arts & Culture

For decades, Winnipeg’s arts and cultural scene has been exceptional, both in the quality of the creative work and in the support audiences in Winnipeg provide.

Winnipeg was the birthplace of Canadian Film and has a historic tradition of excellence that remains strong in literature, music, dance, theatre and film.

Winnipeg’s cultural institutions have a longstanding reputation as the best in Canada. The Manitoba Museum was awarded the Michelin Guide’s highest rating, The Plug-In Gallery curated the first Canadian work to ever win the Venice Biennale, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet has a world-class reputation and the Manitoba Theatre Centre, which was the birthplace of regional theatre in North America, hosted the world premiere in 2009 of “The Boys in the Photograph” by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Ben Elton.

Winnipeg also offers a number of festivals year-round, including a Jazz Festival, Comedy Festival, New Music Festival and one of Canada’s largest and best-attended Fringe Festivals. Other major festivals include:

  • Folklorama, the world’s largest multicultural festival
  • The Winnipeg Folk Festival, one of the largest and longest-running in North America
  • Le Festival du Voyageur, a celebration of Manitoba’s French-Canadian heritage

In addition to local entertainment, Winnipeg also enjoys the world’s biggest touring acts. The MTS Centre, Winnipeg’s state-of-the-art downtown arena, is one of the top three busiest venues in Canada and the top 20 in the world.

The enthusiastic support of Manitobans for the arts is evident in Statistics Canada data, which shows that Manitoba’s performing arts companies enjoyed the highest per capita revenue in Canada, including revenue from ticket sales, public grants and fund-raising. Manitoba ranked first or second in each of these categories individually.